Dangerous Resurrection

CHAPTER 9

——— L I V I N G H E L L ———

It is Sunday morning. I sat quietly sipping coffee on Livinghell's spacious balcony, casually watching the news play on my iPad.

I still wonder what the author was thinking, labeling this story historical yet filling the world with modern conveniences from the new generation. We even have iPhones here. But perhaps that is for the best. After all, she is the author, who am I to complain?

My gaze wandered around the room, and I couldn't help but smile at the memories attached to it. This was Aurelia's favorite room, though she never truly had any claim to it. Long before she, her mother, or her sister set foot in this house, this room had been reserved solely for Livinghell.

Livinghell's grandparents — the Grianzy matriarch and patriarch, commissioned this chamber personally. They loved their granddaughter, born from their son's first marriage, so deeply that Livinghell's status as their obvious favorite was written all over this room. They even designed it themselves.

It was grander and more spacious than the master bedroom belonging to Livinghell's father and evil stepmother. No wonder Aurelia craved it so desperately. She wept, begged, and pleaded endlessly with Alistair, but it made no difference because this room was never hers to take.

It became laughably humiliating when Aurelia resorted to desperate, foolish measures to claim it. She was publicly shamed and scolded by Livinghell's grandparents, and worst of all, she received a sharp, stinging slap straight from her own grandmother's hand.

Poor, foolish Aurelia.

That incident deepened the elderly couple's resentment toward their son. He had brought immense shame to their family, betraying his first wife, fathering illegitimate children with a mistress, and even daring to move his lover right into their ancestral mansion.

Since they could no longer change the past, they poured all their affection and favor onto Livinghell instead. Among the vast Grianzy clan, her grandparents were her only true allies. Aside from them, there were only distant relatives, uncles, cousins, and their descendants — who possessed absolutely no right to inherit the matriarch and patriarch's immense fortune.

The room itself was magnificent and perfectly organized. It held space for a king-sized bed, a cozy sitting area near the balcony, and a massive walk-in closet with separate sections for heels, bags, jewelry, and perfumes. Livinghell's vanity table was exquisite and vast, another detail that fueled Aurelia and Aurora's envy. Their own rooms were cramped in comparison and lacked the coveted private balcony. Everything beautiful or luxurious they desired always seemed to land in Livinghell's hands, making their jealousy fester deeper with each passing year.

"Milady, Miss Lucienne promised your gown would arrive by 6:30 AM" Fhiana said, her voice thick with worry, pacing anxiously behind me. "Pero wala parin."

She seemed far more anxious than I was, the one meant to wear it. I simply shook my head and turned off my iPad. Lucienne had just messaged confirming delivery, which meant someone had intercepted it—someone with ill intent.

"Come, Fhiana. Let us go down and meet it ourselves." I said, rising calmly. She followed close behind, unease still clouding her expression.

We stepped into the hallway and hurried toward the stairs when I spotted a maid rushing upward, head bowed low, struggling visibly under a heavy burden. I signaled Fhiana to halt.